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VOL. XL No. 7. 



PAPERS OF THE 
MILITARY HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MASSACHUSETTS. 



PERRY^S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE. 



COMMANDER J. GILES EATON, U.S.N. 



MAY 
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The BIilitaet Historical Society op Massa- 
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A new and enlarged edition of "The Peninsular 
Campaign of General McClellan in 1862," published 
by the Society in 1881. 

2. THE VIRGINIA CAMPAIGN OF 1862, under General 

Pope. A new edition of the volume published in 1886. 

3. ANTIETAM TO GETTYSBURG. 

4. THE CAMPAIGN IN VIRGINIA IN 1864. 

The Wilderness to Cold Harbor. 

5. PETERSBURG. 

6. THE CAMPAIGN IN VIRGINIA IN 1864, 1865. 

Cedar Creek to Appomattox. 

7. CAMPAIGNS IN KENTUCKY AND TENNESSEE. 

April, 1862, to November, 1863. 

8. THE CAMPAIGN IN GEORGIA, 

May to December, 1864. 

9. OPERATIONS IN THE CAROLINAS, 1861-1863. 

10. CRITICAL SKETCHES OF SOME OF THE FED- 
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PERRY'S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE. 



v» 



i^ 



COMMANDER J.-^ GILES EATON, U.S.N. 



Head Februartj ^, 1S97. 



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THE LIBRARY OF 
CONGRESS, 

Two Coni;* RtCEivtu 

JUL. 13 1901 

Copyright entr^ 

dLASS<a^XXc. Ns 

COPY B. 



COPYRIGHTED BY THE MILITARY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 
OF MASSACHUSETTS. 



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PERRY'S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE. 



The influence of sea power on history is a theme per- 
taininof rather to the statesman and historian than to the 
technical officer, whose main delight in studies of engage- 
ments is found in knowing how fields and fights were 
won. The immediate results are of the first importance to 
his mind, and, though neither blind nor indifferent to the 
importance of consequences, his aim is always to achieve 
the first, and trust to natural issues for the second. 

In the profound discussion of the subject the general 
public may confound the objects which it is sought to 
attain with the particular steps which it is necessary to 
take en route. 

It may well be doubted whether naval commanders 
four score years ago probed more deeply into the whys and 
wherefores than was essential to the accomplishment of 
the destruction of the enemy before them ; and we may 
go even farther than this, and gravely question whether 
the future commander will fight as efficiently if he allows 
his imagination to view too vast a field, and so lose sight 
of the task at hand. 

The victory of Perry, on Lake Erie, carried in its train 
wide consequences of territorial acquisition. I am hazard- 
ing little in asserting that, had Barclay been victorious, 
the whole northern boundary of the United States would 
have been forced southward from the great waterway of 
the Lakes. It is indeed probable that this dire contin- 
gency had been debated in Washington, and that the 
initial step in defense, the sending of Chauncey to Lake 



Ontario, was the result of a matured plan to defend the 
lake coasts by water. Possibly before the surrender of 
General Hull it had been considered that Lake Erie was 
sufficiently guarded by the land forces ; but, from the date 
of his capitulation, the British forces gathering at Detroit 
and Maiden were preparing for an invasion in force, using 
the Lake as a basis of supplies. Urged by the imminence 
of the danger the Government resolved to create a squad- 
ron on Lake Erie, and enter vigorously upon a contest for 
the supremacy of its shallow waters. 

The blockade of the Atlantic seacoast, and the utter 
inadequacy of the gunboats even to annoy the British 
cruisers, left free for the fresh-water service trained 
officers and well-drilled men ; and it was wholly due to 
this disciplined nucleus that fleets were successfully 
created and fought whilst the forest sap still seeped from 
keels, carlins, and plank shears. 

Oliver Hazard Perry, a lieutenant in the navy, of 
thirteen years' naval service (being in 1813 twenty- 
seven years of age), had first seen fighting in the West 
Indies, and later in that excellent school off Tripoli. 
Placed in command of a flotilla of gunboats at Newport, 
R.L, his active spirit chafed at the enforced inaction ; and 
soon after Chauncey had gone to Lake Ontario with eight 
hundred and fifty sailors and marines Perry asked to be 
transferred to service on the Lakes. To his great delight 
the request was granted; and on February 17th he re- 
ceived orders to select such officers and men as were 
fitted for the service on the Lakes, and to report with 
them to Commodore (then Captain) Chauncey at Sackett's 
Harbor on Lake Ontario. The very day this order was 
received Perry dispatched a detachment of fifty men 
under an officer, and two days later a second party of the 
same number, and again on the 21st a third party of the 
same number, on the long and arduous journey through 



almost untracked forests, in the dead of the northern 
winter. Perry himself started on Washington's birthday, 
and despite forced marches did not reach Sackett's Harbor 
until the eighth of March, and, being detained there by a 
threatened assault of the British, did not reach P2rie, then 
called Presque Isle, till the end of March. Here he 
found that the two brigs,. Lawrence and Niagara, were 
already in course of construction, also three other vessels 
of lesser tonnage and lighter build. So hurried were the 
shipwrights that many a tree which waved its branches 
in the sunrise breeze found itself chopped, hewn, squared, 
and tree-nailed into the ship's hull before the evening sun 
had set over the lake. Despite this rapid construction, 
all the vessels appear to have been well built, and certainly 
accomplished the object for which they were designed. 

As Erie was subject to attack, and the British vessels 
had complete control of the Lake, the shipwrights were 
drilled for defense, and the complements intended for the 
improvised fleet constituted a permanent garrison. 

Stores, especially naval stores, were sadly lacking, and 
Perry himself journeyed to Pittsburgh to hasten their 
deliveiy. By hard work and good fortune Perry suc- 
ceeded in bringing to Erie the brig Caledonia and the 
schooners Tigress and Somers, which had been blockaded 
below Buffalo by Canadian batteries. There were built 
from the stump' the brig Lawrence of twenty guns ; the 
Niagara, brig, of twenty guns ; the Ariel, schooner, of 
four guns ; the Scorpion, schooner, of two guns ; and the 
Porcupine, schooner, of one gun. These vessels were 
constructed from the forests adjacent ; but all the appurte- 
nances, batteries, sails and rigging, had to be brought 
hundreds of miles over mere trails in the almost virgin 
forests. The canvas and cordage came from Philadel- 
phia, whilst the guns and projectiles were cast at Pitts- 
burgh, already the seat of a growing iron industry. 



It were idle to dwell upon the almost endless embarrass- 
ments attending the creation of a fleet under such dis- 
advantageous conditions. The wonder is that it was 
equipped at all ; and that it was so well outfitted attests 
the executive ability of Perry. 

Early in July, the squadron, consisting of the brigs 
Lawrence, Niagara, and Caledonia, the schooners Ariel, 
Scorpion, Porcupine, Somers, and Tigress, and the sloop 
Trippe, was ready for sea, but almost destitute of men ; 
and despite urgent dispatches it was not until August 
that Captain Chauncey, on Lake Ontario, forwarded a 
detachment under Master Commandant Jesse D. Elliott, 
which enabled Perry to fill his complement to a point of 
fighting efficiency. Dragging the heavier craft across the 
shallow bar of Erie harbor, the American squadron of 
ten ships put to sea on August 12, and proceeded up the 
Lake towards Sandusky. At this point Perry communi- 
cated with General Harrison, and arranged for concerted 
action between the land and water forces. It must be 
recalled in this connection that General HulFs surrender 
to Brock at Detroit had thrown the northern shore of the 
Lake under control of the British forces, and Proctor, 
with Tecumseh, was at Maiden, ready with five thousand 
men to cross the frontier and devastate the Lake shores of 
Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. After looking into 
Maiden, and deliberating upon a boat attack, which was 
fortunately abandoned. Perry withdrew to Put-in-Bay, 
where we find him on September 9th, 1813, holding 
another council of war, and deciding, unless the enemy 
could be brought to battle in open water, to attack him 
with boats at the anchorage at Maiden. 

At sunrise on September 10th the British fleet was 
descried by the mast-head lookout on the Lawrence, and 
the signal to unmoor and chase was at once made. 

At this time Master Commandant Perry's squadron con- 



sisted of the brig Lawrence (flagship), Lieutenant J. John 
Yarnall, mounting two long 12-pounders and eighteen 
short 32-pounders ; the brig Niagara, Master Commandant 
Jesse D. Elliott, two long 12-pounders, and eighteen 
short 32-pounders ; the brig Caledonia, Lieutenant Daniel 
Turner, two long 24-pounders and one short 32-pounder; 
the schooner Ariel, Lieutenant Jolin H. Packett, four long 
12-pounders; the schooner Tigress, Lieutenant Augustus 
H. M. Conckling, one long 32-pounder ; the sloop Trippe, 
Lieutenant Thomas Holdup Stevens, one long 32-pounder ; 
the schooner Porcupine, Midshipman George Senate, one 
long 32-pounder; the schooner Scorpion, Sailing-Master 
Stephen Champlin, one long 32-pounder and one short 24- 
pounder ; the schooner Somers, Sailing-Master Thomas C. 
Almy, one long 24-pounder and one short 32-pounder; in 
all, nine vessels, mounting 54 guns, with 1536 pounds of 
metal ; and, deducting seven per cent for deficient weight 
in American metal, we have 1428 pounds. These vessels 
were manned by 490 men, only 125 of whom were from 
the regular navy ; a fourth of them were raw recruits, and 
a fourth were negroes; 116 were unfit for dutj' during 
the action, as they were suffering from cholera morbus 
and lake fever. Of the 137 men and boys of the Law- 
rence's crew, only 103 were on board fit for duty on this 
occasion. 

The British squadron consisted of the ship Detroit 
(flagship), mounting two long 24-pounders, one long 18- 
pounder, six long 12-pounders, eight long 9-pounders, one 
short 24-pounder and one short 18-pounder; the ship Queen 
Charlotte, Captain Finnis, one long 12-pounder, two long 
9-pounders, and fourteen short 24-pounders ; the schooner 
Lady Prevost, Lieutenant Edward Wise Buchan, one long 
9-pounder. two long 6-pounders, and ten short 12-pound, 
ers; the brig Hunter, Lieutenant Bignell, four long 6- 
pounders, two long 4-pt)unders, two long 2-pounders, and 



8 

two short 12-pounders; the sloop Little Belt, one long 12- 
pounder and two long 6-pounders ; the schooner Chippewa, 
Mr. Campbell, one long 9-pounder; in all, six vessels, 
mounting 63 guns, with a total weight of metal 852 
pounds. These vessels were manned by from 440 to 490 
men and boys. James has neglected to give satisfactory 
evidence of the number of men in the English squadron, 
and as the British official reports are silent on this im- 
portant detail we must rely on American official docu- 
ments. 150 of these men were from the Royal Navy, 80 
were Canadian sailors, and 240 of them were soldiers, 
mostly regulars. Commander Robert Heriot Barclay, the 
Commander of the British squadron, was " a man of no 
ordinary fame." At this time he was in his thirty-seventh 
year, and had fought under Nelson at Trafalgar, where he 
was dangerously wounded, and in still another engagement 
he had lost an arm. Lieutenant Buchan, of the Lady 
Prevost, also had distinguished himself under Nelson. 

COMPARATIVE FORCE. 

American 54 giins 1428 pounds 490 crew. 

British 63 guns 852 pounds 440 to 490 crew. 

Of the men listed the Americans had fit for duty 416, 
and the British probably a few less, but I do not regard 
this as at all an essential point in the battle fought. Pro- 
vided each side had a sufficient number to fight their 
guns, the mere presence of more men could add little to 
the efficiency of the ships. But when we consider the 
weisfht of the broadsides we find that the Americans had 
a decided superiority. Thus, the broadsides of the nine 
American vessels weighed 896 pounds, whilst the weight 
of broadside of the six British vessels was but 459 pounds. 
The superiority of the Americans in long-range guns was 
as 300 to 200. In tonnage the Americans were superior 



9 

also, only one vessel, the Detroit, equalling the Lawrence 
and Niagara in displacement, although the Queen Char- 
lotte, of 400 tons, was practically in the same class. Had 
all the vessels of Perry's fleet engaged at the same time 
the issue could not long have been in doubt; for the 
American vessels had all the elements of superiority, and, 
as we shall presently see, the capricious wind declared 
itself an ally, and by a sudden shift gave Perry the 
weather-CTaofe. 

Before this occurred the American fleet had been beat- 
ing to windward, and the only fear which possessed their 
minds was that the enemy might fill away to the eastward 
and stand down the Lake. A sudden shift of the wind to 
the eastward would have precluded this manoeuvre, if it 
had been contemplated, and Perry, with his vessels in 
order of battle, was left with the weather-gage. At 11.45 
A.M., Perry hoisted the signal for " close action," half dis- 
tance (that is, 360 feet), line ahead. Commanders had 
previously been cautioned to preserve the line ; but Perry 
had further added, in the words of Nelson, " If you lay 
your enemy close alongside you cannot be out of your 
place. ' The importance of remembering this maxim will 
be evident when we see how a too strict observance of 
the letter and utter disregard of the spirit of the signal 
nearly caused the loss of the battle. 

It will be noted that the American fleet was bearino- 
down on the enemy with a free wind, whilst Barclay, with 
his light sails handed and topsails shivering, calmly awaited 
their approach. Perry, hoisting his long motto flag in- 
scribed with the words of the dying Lawrence — " Don't 
give up the ship " — crowded ahead on his leading vessels 
in the light and rather baffling airs, whilst the brig Cale- 
donia, the next in line, a slow sailer in any breeze but 
actually sluggish in light airs, fell farther and farther to 
the rear and out of station. Elliott, in the Niagara, the 



10 

next in order, shortened sail, and finally luffed far to wind- 
ward, to avoid over-running his immediate leader. Tlie 
British fleet, in compact order, each vessel in supporting- 
distance, covered less than one-third of the space of the 
American fleet. A delay of ten minutes would have en- 
abled Perry to correct this break in his formation, and bring 
his rear vessels into close order. But, animated by the 
fear that the foe might still endeavor to escape, he crowded 
forward ; and at 11.50 the action was begun by the Detroit, 
which discharged her long 24-pounder, whose shot crashed 
into the Lawrence amidships. The Scorpion, which was 
the nearest of the American fleet, responded, and at 
11.55 the Lawi-ence herself opened fire with her long- 
range guns. At 12, the Lawrence essayed her carron- 
ades, but finding that these fell short soon ceased their fire. 
At the same time the action became general, although all 
the rear ships of the American fleet were practically out 
of range, and only the long guns of the Caledonia and 
Niagara were fired. As the long-range guns of the De- 
troit, Hunter, and Queen Charlotte were centered on the 
Lawrence she soon began to suffer seriously, and in order 
to bring his carronades into play Perry made sail to close. 
By 12.20 he had worked down to close quarters, and the 
action was being furiously waged between the Lawrence 
on one side, and the Detroit, Hunter, and Queen Charlotte 
on the other. The relative weight of broadsides between 
these contestants was: Lawrence, 300 pounds, and the 
three British vessels, 400 pounds. The Scorpion and Ariel 
were actively engaged, but could not divert the fierce fire 
poured on the American flagship. The Caledonia had 
gradually closed, but the Niagara was far to windward, 
and practically out of action. As the Niagara was the 
best manned and most efficient of the American vessels, 
her discreditable inaction at this period gave the British 
a preponderance in action \\'hich was soon to silence the 



11 

Lawrence and well nigh defeat a superior antagonist. 
The fighting at the head of the line was then extraordi- 
narily fierce and bloody. The four leading Britisii vessels 
and the three leading American ships were fought in 
the most determined and courageous manner. With the 
schooners assisting, the weight of metal was about equal, 
but the leading British vessels had a superiority in men. 
The smaller vessels were suffering but little, as nearly all 
the guns on both sides were aimed at the larger craft. 
Thus, although the Lawrence was almost a wreck, the 
Queen Charlotte was nearly disabled, and the Detroit was 
fearfully cut up. But in losses of men the Lawrence had 
suffered most of all. At this time, 12.25, of the 103 men 
■who had srone into action on board the Lawrence, 83 were 
actually dead or wounded, and her shallow cock-pit, situ- 
ated above the water line, permitting the round shot to 
pass through, afforded no shelter to the wounded, and 
men upon the operating table were cut in two by the shot 
of the enemy. The scene in the cock-pit at this time 
must have been horrible. Crowded with wounded, suffer- 
ing from every form of laceration, the deck a mass of 
gore, with fragments of flesh scattered in all directions, the 
wounded receiving new and mortal strokes from the round 
shot passing through, the shock of the constant striking of 
the broadsides on the battered hull, the fall of spars, the 
splintering of the boats at the davits, were all heard through 
the opened seams of the deck above, adown which streamed 
rivulets of blood on the heads of those below. 

On deck every brace and bowline had been shot awa}'-, 
the bulwarks were shattered to pieces, and eveiy gun but 
one in the ensfaofed or starboard side was disabled or dis- 
mounted. Several times the Lawrence had barely escaped 
blowing up, owing to shot piercing her magazine. 

As the crew on deck fell, Perry frequently called 
through the skylight to the surgeon's assistants for aid in 



12 

working the battery. Perry himself fired the Lawrence's 
last gun, aided by the chaplain and purser, God and ]\Iani- 
mon serving his purpose together. 

Throughout all this most critical period Perry's calm 
courage never deserted him ; and though his ship was a 
wreck, his crew was a mass of dead and crippled human- 
ity, his riggmg and sails were torn and shot to ribbons, one 
mast was gone and the other wounded, the thought of 
striking never appears to have occurred to him. An officer 
of infinite resource, the flagship having served her purpose, 
he resolved at once to transfer his flag to the still unin- 
jured Niagara, and wrest a victory from the very jaws of 
defeat. One boat, on tlie port quarter of the LawTence, 
would still float, and this was manned by four of the crew 
who could still pull an oar ; and taking with him the huge 
motto flag, some fifty-seven feet long. Perry stepped from 
the gory deck into the cutter alongside, and pulling clear 
of the quarter steered his course direct for the Niagara. 
Standing- erect in the stern sheets he was at once made 
the target for the British gunners, and we have their own 
testimony that whole broadsides of grape and canister were 
sent point blank at this tiny craft. Oars were struck, 
gunwales torn, and even the colors at the stern pierced, 
but Perry passed uninjured on his way, though forced by 
his crew to sit down and not expose himself to needless 
peril. 

By 2.45 he had gained the deck of the Niagara, and 
sending her commander, Master- Commandant Elliott, to 
hasten up the rear vessels. Perry hoisted again his own 
flag and his long motto of " Don't give up the ship," and 
putting the helm up and making sail in the now freshen- 
ing breeze was soon rapidly bearing down on the English 
flagship. 

The Lawrence, crippled beyond lielp, with every gun 
dismounted, with only fourteen unhurt in her complement, 



13 

slowly drifted through the British line, and finally, all 
further resistance being impossible, she hauled down her 
colors, and a mere wreck outwardly, a charnel house 
inwardly, was swept to leeward, as the enemy could not 
take possession. 

As the Lawrence hauled down her colors, the British 
hailed her surrender with cheers, and supposed the battle 
won. We may imagine the feelings which burned in 
Perry's breast as he heard these shouts, and saw his late 
flagship blown helplessly away. As the Lawrence finally 
got out of range and no enemy had boarded her, the colors 
were again hoisted, though she took no further part in the 
closing act of the battle. 

Scarcely had the last British cheer died away, when the 
rapid approach of the Niagara, followed by the Somers, 
Porcupine, Tigress, and Trippe warned them that victory 
still hung in the balance, and that they must be prepared 
for the new attack. In order to bring a fresh broadside 
to bear, the Detroit attempted to wear, but in so doing 
was fouled by the Queen Charlotte, and both vessels were 
locked together, head and stern. In this position. Perry, 
in the Niagara, with the signal for close action flying, swept 
ahead of the Queen Charlotte and astern of the Detroit^ 
and at pistol range raked both ships with his starboard 
guns, whilst as he swept around, his port broadside raked 
the Lady Prevost. Then, backing his topsails, he engaged 
the Hunter. The effect of these raking broadsides, deliv- 
ered at short range on the already crippled Brtish ship, 
was absolutely decisive. The storm of grape, canister, and 
solid shot tore its way through the crowded decks and cut 
great lines through the living. The helpless position of 
the Detroit and Queen Charlotte, the constant raking fire 
of the American schooners which had now come into 
action, the carrying away of all the masts of the Detroit 
and the mizzenmast of the Queen Charlotte wrought irre- 



14 

trievable ruin. For the first time in the action the whole 
American force was engaged, and from this moment the 
battle was won. At 3 p.m., or just fifteen minutes from 
the time that the Niagara bore up to come into action, the 
Hunter, Lady Prevost, Detroit, and Queen Charlotte sur- 
rendered. The Chippewa and the Little Belt, after a vain 
effort to escape, were captured by the Scorpion and the 
Ariel. Determined to receive the surrender of the British 
on the quarter-deck of his own flagship, scarred and torn, 
but worthy of all honor. Perry again took to his boat, and 
repairing on board the Lawrence received the swords of 
the Commanders, at once retui-ning them in token of his 
appreciation of their gallant resistance. 

The American loss was 27 killed and 96 wounded, — 
a total of 123. Of these 22 killed and 61 wounded had 
fallen on the Lawrence, or practically two-thirds of the 
whole casualties on the American side. The British loss, 
falling most heavily on the Detroit and Queen Charlotte, 
was 41 killed and 94 wounded, — a total of 135. Over 
half of these casualties took place in the last fifteen min- 
utes of the engagement. The very large proportion of 
casualties on both sides attests the severity of the fighting, 
and courage of the contestants. 

Both fleets fought bravely till the end came ; and if 
the Americans have rejoiced somewhat unduly over this 
famous victory, let us recall that it affords the only in- 
stance in history of the surrender and capture of an entire 
British fleet. 

The consequences of the loss of the British fleet were 
immediate and decisive. It gave to the Americans the 
complete command of the upper lakes, insured the con- 
quest of Upper Canada, and increased the confidence in 
American resources. 

The enemy at once evacuated Detroit and Michigan, 
and shortly after Maiden was occupied by American 



15 

troops. Ill short, the territory lost by the land forces in 
1812 was recaptured by the naval forces in 1813, as the 
result of this battle. 

It is an ungracious task to criticise a victor, but, if we 
are to profit by a study of his methods, it is necessary and 
useful. The chief fact which stands boldly in relief in 
the victory won by Perry is the creation and formation 
of a fleet with resources ludicrously inadequate. In this 
young Perry showed not only great ability, but his posses- 
sion, in a wonderful degree, of the zeal and perseverance, 
which, looking steadfastly to an end in view, overcomes 
every obstacle, and conquers by sheer persistence. The 
operation of getting his fleet across the shallow bar of 
Lake Erie was a brilliant achievement, executed in the 
presence of a powerful foe. The manner in which the 
American ships were fought shows clearly that the crews, 
composed of motley material, — part sailors, part soldiers, 
part backwoodsmen, now for the first time actually afloat, 
— were well drilled in great guns ; and, apart from the 
gross error of the Captain of the Niagara, the vessels 
were well sailed and efficiently manoeuvered. The energy 
and activity of Perry had infused confidence throughout 
the men under him, and the desperate fight made by 
the Lawrence proves conclusively that the calm courage 
of the Commander-in-Chief influenced the whole crew. 
Again, Perry's abandonment of his flagship, and rowing 
in an open boat to the still uninjured vessels of his 
squadron, gave clear intimation of the indomitable pluck 
and resourceful activity which characterized his actions. 
1 can find but three other instances in history in which the 
flag officer shifted his colors during action, to wit : the 
Duke of York, at the battle of Solebay ; the English 
Admiral Sprague in the battle of the Texel, fought in 1673; 
and Von Tromp, when he shifted from the Golden Lion to 
the Comet. Perry was nearer his enemy than any of 



16 

the three mentioned, and probably at no time during the 
action was he in such deadly peril as when, erect in the 
stern sheets of his small cutter, he crossed the broadsides 
of his foes and ran the gauntlet of their small-arm fire. 

But neither at this time nor at any period of the battle 
did his calnmess desert him. Bearing a seemingly charmed 
life, he passed through all the vicissitudes of the action 
as unmoved as though on parade. 

Nevertheless, granting all that has been thus briefly 
outlined, — granting his unquestioned courage, his officer- 
like bearing, his coolness under the most trying condi- 
tion, and his readiness to change his plan of action 
when circumstances changed, and to all these admirable 
qualities, adding the credit for the creation of his fleet 
and the organization which reflected high honor upon 
the flag-officer, — nevertheless, it remains to be said tha,t 
Perry's fleet, as a fleet, was poorly handled in the action, 
and no proper use was made of its material resources until 
the last fifteen minutes of an action which lasted a full 
three houi-s. 

I have no intention of entering upon the once hotly 
contested dispute as to the blameworthiness of Master- 
Commandant Elliott, of the Niagara. A mere glance at 
the diagrams will show what his ship should have done, 
and did not do. Yet, granting this, it is fully evident 
that Perry pressed into action with his fleet not at half 
distance, and that, with the weather-gage and an absolute 
command of the situation, he began the contest when he 
knew that at most four of his nine ships could properly 
ensraare. None knew better than Perrv that the Caledonia 
was a slow sailer, and none knew better than he that she 
was falling far astern and holding back the major part of 
his fleet, when he fired his first gun. Although at this 
time the breeze was light, a very short delay would have 
sufficed him to get all his vessels in hand and concentrate 



17 

his fire upon the enemy. In despite of this, his eagerness 
for battle led him into a tactical blunder in separating his 
fleet into two squadrons, and engaging with the weakest 
portion of his command. This error cost many lives on 
board the Lawrence, and for a time jeopardized the success 
of the action. Perry's failure to concentrate his force is 
the salient feature which strikes at once at the prime 
essential of success. However much blame may be visited 
upon Elliott in the Niagara, it cannot be gainsaid that 
the flag-officer, before committing his own ship to close 
action, is bound by every rule of prudence to have his 
fleet well in hand and his ships within supporting dis- 
tance of each other. Perry's sudden dash for the enemy 
was ill advised, and cost him dearly. The original plan, 
that, whilst the Lawrence engaged the Detroit, the Niagara 
should close mth the Queen Charlotte, was well devised. 
But when the Queen Charlotte, which had exchanged 
but a few long-range shots with the Niagara, saw that 
she could assist the Detroit and Hunter in their conflict 
with the Lawrence, she very wisely drew ahead, and the 
Niagara, not following, was soon entirely out of action. 
Had Elliott possessed the daring and energy of Perry 
all would have been well, and it must not be forgotten 
that a great part of the success won by Nelson was due 
to the daring and skill of his captains, and on this Perry 
could fairly count. 

Again, upon a lake whose surface was as smooth as the 
traditional mill-pond, the schooners of Perry's fleet could, 
in the earlier part of the action, have rendered most excel- 
lent service. It does appear that Perry's management of 
those vessels with their long-range guns was faulty, and 
that, favored by the weather-gage and a preponderance 
of cruns, he should have made these craft important 
factors in the first attack. The services they rendered in 
the last fifteen minutes of the action, and the testimony of 



18 

the British officers to the destruction caused by their 
terrible raking fire, show what capabilities they possessed. 

Despite these defects in his battle plan, or it may be 
because of them. Perry's victory was a more brilliant 
exploit than had he regularly and methodically crushed 
his foe by bringing all his vessels into action simulta- 
neously. The final result was complete, as Perry well 
reported, — " We have met the enemy and they are ours, 
— two ships, one brig, two schooners and one sloop." 
Independently of the glory to our flag, the battle insured 
the recapture of Detroit, rout of the British armj% the 
conquest of the whole peninsula of Upper Canada, and 
the immediate tranquillity of the entire littoral from 
Huron to Niagara. 

The country rejoiced exceedingly in the glory of the 
achievement, and honors of promotion and laudatory 
addresses were given the victor. 

The wonderful battle picture which hangs on the land- 
ing of the Senate wing in the Capitol at Washington 
depicts Perry erect and dauntless, as he leaves in his 
small boat the battered wreck of the Lawrence. And the 
guns of his fleet were used to announce, from Buffalo to 
New York, the opening of the Erie Canal, conveying, by 
their reverberations, the news, in one hour and twenty 
minutes, from lake to tide-water. 

The glory of his achievement will endure as the only 
instance of the capture of an entire British fleet, upon 
any waters, and the complete annihilation of the forces 
of that great power upon the Upper Lakes. 

This glory Perry earned by his work of preparation and 
his indomitable courage ; and as long as our navy exists 
his name will be honored and his praises sung, as evi- 
dences that the American people, and they alone, have 
successfully withstood the great naval power of the 
Christian era. 






Andrew F.Leatherbee 



Lumber 



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FINE FLOORING A SPECIALTY 






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Organized as a State Bank 1831 
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